1. Field
The present disclosure generally relates to techniques and fixtures for holding a part or an elongate member such as a stringer during processing, and more particularly relates to a method and apparatus for holding and constraining the part in a desired position while reducing the need for clamps and manual labor.
2. Background
It is often necessary to hold parts in a desired position or orientation as the parts are being processed. For example, in the aircraft industry, long structural members such as composite stringers must be hand held in a desired position during an adhesive bonding process where a film material is attached to the stringer prior to covering with the skin of the aircraft. In preparation for bonding, the film adhesive material is manually rolled out to the length of the stringer, which may be 90 feet or more, and a protective poly backer must then be removed from the film. The entire length of the film material is then flipped over by a team of workers in order to place the backside of the film adhesive on a base flange of the stringer where it adheres. Workers then manually trim excess film material away from the edges of the base flange. Manual manipulation of the stringer may be tedious, time-consuming, labor intensive and presents the risk of damage to edges of the base flange of the stringer.
Accordingly, there is a need for a system for holding elongate members such as stringers which reduces the need for manual labor and allows adhesive processing operations to be performed more efficiently, reduce undesirable results associated with hand work and increase process flow time. There is also a need for a holding system that may be used in combination with a material applicator to quickly and consistently apply adhesive film material on elongate members such as stringers, and to trim excess film material thereafter.